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Included in the haul is a cannon, two porcelain cups, and three gold and bronze coins.
By Tim Newcomb
The hauling up of the world’s most valuable shipwreck has to start somewhere. So crews have brought to the surface three small gold and bronze coins from the 1700s, pulled from the Spanish galleon the San José, considered the Holy Grail of all shipwrecks. But there’s plenty more still sitting 1,970 feet below the ocean’s surface off the coast of Colombia, as much as $17 billion worth.
The San José, sunk by the British Royal Navy in the Caribbean during the War of Spanish Succession in 1708, was full of value. The ship was laden with 10 years’ worth of gold, silver, and gems, tribute from Spanish colonies in Latin America headed back to the Spanish king. Experts have now pulled up the first pieces from the ship, including coins, a cannon, and porcelain cups.
Read the full article on Popular Mechanics:
https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/archaeology/a69546218/holy-grail-of-shipwrecks-first-treasure/
